The New Girl in Town
by beingxwest
Summary: Lyor has a little sister who is better at politics than anyone. Ever. She's also a match-maker... And Emily and Aaron are a disaster. And Hannah and Chuck and the British guy with issues and an accent? Forget it. Seth eats pizza, writes speeches with Lyor's sister, and pretends that the whole thing is not hilariously funny.
1. chapter 1

_**Fandom:** Designated Survivor_

 _ **Ships:** Emoren (maybe more, if there is room later)_ _There are so not enough Lyor fics in this fandom (there are literally 3, people, I looked). He's such a great character, but I feel like we don't see him enough. So this fic is not completely show compliant--Lyor has a sister! Also, Aaron and Emily get their **lives together** and get together and stop breaking all our hearts. Leo is also getting a new girlfriend, because it is very necessary. And Leo and Penny are going to get some screen time, because the way they handle being __the first children is_ _important_.

 _The press is going to tear Seth into pieces_ , Lyor thought. This political crisis was only the latest in a long string of disasters that the White House staffers had beaten. How they pulled it off remained a mystery to him, but they'd managed thus far.

And they would keep managing, if he had anything to say about it.

"What are we supposed to do, Lyor?" President Kirkman's voice broke through his thoughts. The President wiped his free hand across his face before taking a long drink from the glass of whiskey in his other hand. "How do we get in front of this?"

"Is there even a way to stop this from happening?" The chief advisor to the commander-in-chief demanded. "Isn't it already too late if we're just now hearing about it? Maybe we should focus on damage control."

Lyor shook his head. "No amount of damage control in the world is going to stop this from spiraling if we can't get in front of it somehow. Damage control _will_ be necessary, but not yet. We need to first minimize the issue. _Then_ we do damage control."

"Well, I'm open to ideas," the President stated after a long moment of silence.

Lyor wiped a hand across his forehead, and then rubbed the back of his neck. He had an idea. There was definitely a way.

But none of them--save for him, maybe, and Emily, probably, and definitely the President, who's administration would be saved (for at least another 36 hours), and most likely Seth, who would have something to say to the press before they got a chance to eat him alive--were going to like this very much.

Aaron was going to hate it. Kendra... would be undetermined until she met her.

Maybe the girls would just be happy to see another girl around, and forget about her icy personality.

All possibilties, of course.

Before Lyor could think better of it, he suggested, "What if I knew someone who could help us?"

"You think we need _more_ help?" Aaron smirked, eyebrows raised. Lyor wanted to wipe the smug look off of his face, but Lydia could do that herself. And she would, once she realized what an idiot he was.

"Hang on, Aaron, let's listen to him. What've you got, Lyor?"

"A little sister. She's got the best political brain there is. _I_ call _her_ when I run into a roadblock. You'd think she grew up here instead of in a tiny town in Texas."

There was yet another moment of painful silence.

"I didn't know you had a sister," Emily said, a slight smile on her face. "That's cool."

Aaron muttered something along the lines of "I thought you just landed here from Krypton". Lyor chose to ignore him and turned to the President.

"She's my half-sister, and we didn't know each other until her freshman year of high school. It was my senior year of high school, and we stayed friends. We didn't think of each other as our siblings until a bit after that, closer to when I was starting my masters, but we do now."

"And she could help us?" Kirkman asked, taking another swig of his drink.

Lyor nodded. "Lydia is the best. Better than me. She doesn't always play well with others"--he shot a glare in Aaron's general direction, hearing him mutter, "Probably runs in the family", but gave up when Emily playfully smacked the chief advisor's shoulder--"but she knows what she's doing. She's great at this stuff. Can spin anything, make anything disappear."

Seth spoke up for the first time since Emily dragged him and Lyor by their ties into the Oval office: "She can spin things well?"

Lyor only nodded, unsure of where Seth was going with this.

"Where can I find her? I'll take all the help I can get."

Okay. Seth was on board. _That's a good sign._

Kirkman threw back the remainder of his glass's contents. "Not because she's your sister, but if you think she can help us, she can work on this on a trial-basis. Aaron will get her a temporary access card and high enough clearance to help. If it goes well, she can explore a future with my staff."

"Oh, no, sir, I'm not trying to get her a _job_ here. She's just the only one who's going to be able to fix this."

Kirkman shook his head. "I know. You don't like favoritism or nepotists. You have morals. Our nation needs some morals right now." He took a breath, and a sly smile worked it's way onto his face. "But if she's as good as you say she is, she should be working here already, anyway."

Lyor found himself smiling in spite of himself. "Thank you, Mr. President."

"You're very welcome. Now get your sister here--this needs to be resolved as quickly as possible. Emily, clearances for--I didn't get your sister's name, Lyor."

"Lydia, sir. Lydia Boone."

"Alright." The President gave him a smile and turned back to Emily. "Lydia Boone's clearances and I.D."

"Yes, Mr. President," Emily said before turning on her heel to leave. Lyor nodded to Kirkman and his chief advisor and followed the Chief of Staff out if the room.

"Why didn't you tell me you had a sister?" Her voice was playfully accusing--a joke.

Lyor grinned. "Didn't want Seth or Aaron getting their claws into her. Besides, there's plenty of junior staffers that would love to take her to dinnerner, and I just don't think " _President's Political Director Strangles Junior Staffers for Hitting on Baby Sister"_ makes a good headline."

Emily chuckled. She gave him a knowing look, shook her head. "Well, I want to meet her. I need a new shopping partner if she decides to stick around."

Giving her a mock-salute, Lyor promised her that yes, she would meet her, and yes, his sister would stick around. And no, he swore, he was not hiding away anymore younger siblings (that he knew of).

They went their separate ways after that. Emily had to rush background check Lydia and get her paperwork dealt with. Lyor had to convince her to come to the White House.

·§·

Emily had the more difficult job, when Lyor really thoufht about it.

The phone only rang once--Lyor had only just stepped outside and was closing the door behind him--before Lydia picked up and he heard the bright and chipper voice of his younger sister over the line. "How's my favorite older brother?"

"I'm doing good, doing good."

" _Liar_." There was a _pop,_ like she was opening a bag of chips. "I may not watch the news on a _daily_ basis, but I watch it when I don't hear from you for a suspicious amount of time."

He tried not to sound too hopeful as he prompted, "And?" Lyor knew that she'd already made up her mind about the verdict of the situation--she already knew whether or not this ship was going to sink or not.

" _And_...it needs the touch of someone who knows what they're doing. Who's running that circus?"

He snorted. Lydia didn't have an overwhelming amount of patience for cluelessness.

" _You_ can be running the circus, provided you don't mind pulling up the anchor and getting the ship back to port within a timely manner."

There was a pause.

"What do you mean... _me_?"

"The President is getting you temporary clearance so that you can come save the administration from various forms of brimstone and fire."

" _The_ President?" Lydia repeated, her voice barely a whisper.

Hearing the footsteps behind him, Lyor turned around to find none another than the man in question himself smirking. He mouthed, _Having trouble?_

No, Lyor was _not_ having trouble convincing his sister. While they were on a tight schedule, the conversation was right on track. But... An idea sprung in his head, not unlike a lightbulb.

No one could ever tell him he didn't have a sense of humor.

So no, he was _not_ having trouble, but he nodded and grinned at Kirkman, who nodded, grinned, and motioned for him to put the phone on speaker right back.

 _This'll be good._

He clicked the speaker button and held the phone between him and the commander and chief. "Hey, Lyds, there's someone very important who wants to talk to you."

"Lydia? This is President Kirkman, and your brother"--there was a crash on the other end of the line, and Kirkman's eyes grew wide. Lyor waved off his concern. His sister had probably dropped something in shock--"has told us all about you. He says you're the best. My team could really use your help. Come to think of it, _I_ could really use your help. I'm sure you've seen the news, and this situation won't go away if we just keep staring at it."

"I think that President Kirkman is offering you a job Lyds," Lyor offered after another pause. "At least on a temporary basis."

"I need directions," his sister huffed. Her voice was quieter, like she was a bit further away from her phone now. She also sounded out of breath. Lyor chuckled. She was probably throwing herself around her apartment, getting dressed and putting together her things for her car and to work. "I don't know how to get there."

Kirkman raised an eyebrow, covered the speaker-mouth-speaking-part of the phone with his hand. "Should she be driving? She sounds... flustered."

"She gets nervous. About... a lot of things. New people."

"Hence the 'doesn't play well with others' part." It was a statement, not a question.

Lyor nodded again.

"Mike," Kirkman called over his shoulder. "Would you mind--?"

"I'm getting the car, Mr. President."

Another member of the Secret Service arrived behind the President, taking Mike's place, and Mike headed for the garage.

"Thank you!" Kirkman called after him. "Send her address to Mike, will you?"

Lyor nodded. "Of course."

The President removed his hand from the phone. "I'm going to have one of my agents come and pick you up, Lydia, of that's alright."

"Can I...? Lyor pointed in the direction that Mike had gone. "My sister has a thing about people she doesn't--"

Kirkman nodded. "You better hurry," he chuckled. Lyor was already taking his sister off speaker, returning the phone to his ear, and high-tailing it to the door. "Thank your sister for me!"

"Yes, Mr. President!" he threw over his shoulder.

Tom Kirkman smiled.

Lyor spoke of Lydia like she was also his best friend, and he was happy that he had her to lean on.


	2. Chapter Two

Lydia Boone could've _killed_ her brother.

Putting _the President_ on the phone with her like that, letting her sound like a clumsy idiot without half of a clue... It was incredibly rude. It was also incredibly uncalled for, though, given the firestorm on the news, they must not have had much time.

She really couldn't believe that a junior staffer would get on TV and say that no, the President isn't competent enough to run the country. (The actual quote that channel eight had was something like "President Kirkman couldn't run a _kitchen_ , forget the White House, much less an entire country.") And then those tapes getting leaked? It was awful. And he'd announced his re-election bid, and she was so happy--so proud of her brother, too, but someone _good_ was in the White House. Not a real politican, but someone _good_.

The country needed a little more _good._ Lydia was standing outside her apartment complex when the black Escalade pulled up outside. She knew better than to run down there without figuring out who it was first, but when Lyor climbed out of the passenger side, she couldn't help herself. Her tote bag, propped against her leg, tipped over to lean on her purse as she all but leapt towards her brother.

"Lyds!" Her older brother wrapped his arms around her, spinning her around in a way that made her feet come off the ground. "I missed you, baby sister."

She playfully smacked his shoulder as he put her down. "I'm not a _baby_ , you know. I've dated more guys than you have."

·§·

Mike hid a smile behind his hand. The political director's little sister had a sense of humor--and, apparently, was the only one who could keep up with her brother's sarcasm and banter.

"That's because I've never dated a guy."

Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. She noted the raising of the Secret Service agent's eyebrows before pursing her lips. _Maybe nobody can keep up with_ her _either,_ he thought to himself. "I still think that you and Matt Winston were--"

" _Oh-_ kay then, baby sister, let's get in the car, no need to bring up Matt Winston."

The look that she threw Mike told a very different story, but she returned to where she'd left her things, picked them up, and climbed into the backseat. Lyor, to Mike's surprise, got in next to her and shut the door.

It took Mike less than thirty seconds to get into the driver's seat after watching the Boone siblings get themselves in the car, Lydia's bright pink shoulder bag--filled to the brim with manilla file folders and notebook papers and what had appeared to be a novel of some sort--and all. When he did, though, Lydia was grinning from ear to ear, and Lyor seemed to be doing his best impression of a tomato.

This would be a fun ride to the White House.

·§·

By the time they pulled into the roundabout that made up half of the front entrance, Mike had explained the obvious rules and security policies, and told her that her credientials should be at the front door.

And then hadn't managed to get another word in between the sarcastic remarks of the Boones.

They'd managed to go from Matt Winston--okay, so, Mike was _definitely_ googling that name when he got home--to Lydia's concerns about working with her brother, which Mike had thought was normal. Except Lyor responded with, "Listen, everybody's pretty cool. Except Aaron, he's a snake." Mike didn't know how he felt about the political director talking about the national security advisor like that, but he really wasn't prepared for "Like, Lyds, you're a _baby_ snake. Total Slytherin, yeah, fine, which I _still_ think makes you a Hufflepuff"--at which point Lydia screeched, " _Lies!"_ \--"but if you're a baby snake, then he's a full grown king cobra with an attitude problem."

"He can't be _that_ bad." The knowing smile was evident in her voice. The brother and sister had probably had this conversation before.

"Oh, yes, he can, and yes, he is."

"His only attitude problem, Ly, is probably that it messes with _your_ attitude."

"I don't have an attitude."

The younger girl only hummed in response. By this point, they were getting out of the car, the bright pink bag in Lyor's hand--to Lydia's apparent dismay, if the smirk on her brother's face had anything to say about it--and heading to the door. The smirk on Lyor's face was exchanged for a small smile--only the corners of his mouth turned up--as they arrived at the door.

The doors were opened by the security guards who stood there, as they were for everyone who they allowed inside this way. But clearly Lydia wasn't expecting it, and she stopped right up on her toes as she realized the doors were being opened for them.

Okay, fine. Even Mike thought that was kind of funny.

Lyor ushered his sister along. Both of the Boones gave a thank-you-nod to the guards, though Lydia's came with a smile. Mike nodded at the men he worked with and led them to the security desk.

They got her credentials. Mike performed the check on her bag to speed up the process, handing it back to her--Lyor took out of his hand, though, much to Lydia's (again) scoffing disappointment. Mike gave her an 'I tried' smile. They left the security desk, and the gentlemen who sat there rolled his eyes behind the Boones at Mike. "They're pretty cool," he offered, tapping the top of the desk and making to follow Lyor.

Lyor attached the badge they'd gotten for her to the lanyard, still carrying her bag, and Lydia had pulled it on and fixed her hair and the collars of her shirt and jacket. They were still bickering, still going back and forth--"How do I know you didn't leave something out, Lyor?" and then "I told you, you're going to do great, baby sister." (Lydia Boone did _not_ like being called 'baby sister', and what happened next was proof.) "Lyor, you got married. In Vegas. And didn't tell me." ( _Married?_ Mike thought. _Alright then._ )--when a door right in front of them opened, nearly taking both of them out.

President Kirkman stepped out, Emily at his side. "You must be Lydia. It's a pleasure to meet you."


End file.
